
Kalakand | Indian Cheese Cake is a delicious traditional Indian sweet . The prime ingredients for it are milk and sugar. The sweet is rich, moist and melt in the mouth kinds.
Diwali is one of the most popular Hindu festivals. This is one festival where I love to make different sweets, decorate the house with flowers, rangolis and diyas. Since there is so much to do, I prefer to make simple quick mithai’s. This Mithai is super delicious and you can make it in under 30 minutes.
What is Kalakand ?
Kalakand is an Indian dessert, we can call it Indian Cheese Cake or Milk Fudge. It is one of the most popular North Indian sweets which is very soft and has a grainy texture. The main ingredient to make this mithai is milk. It is a perfect sweet for Festivals like Diwali, Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi. I actually make it regularly, especially when the family wants some quick sweets or when I carry edible gifts for friends.
Ingredients required for Kalkand | Indian Cheese Cake
Milk; Full-Fat milk is ideal for making Kalakand, as this yields better quantity and quality. Both Cow or Buffalo milk can be used.
Lemon: We will use lemon to curdle the milk. You can use vinegar too. I always prefer to dilute lemon or vinegar and add it gently.
Sugar: Kalakand is not very sweet, you really don’t need much sugar. Adjust it according to your taste. Alternatively use jaggery or artificial sweetener.
Cardamom powder: Almost all Indian Mithais are incomplete without cardamom. It gives a wonderful aroma and flavour to the sweet.
Nuts: Pistachios and Almonds taste best. Simply garnish with chopped silvers. You can sprinkle cardamom powder and saffron strands for that extra oomph.

How to make Kalakand | Indian Cheese Cake ?
Firstly divide the milk equally into two pots. Place both the milk pots for boiling on two separate burners.
Pot one we will make chenna and pot 2 we will reduce the milk to half.
Let us make the chenna first.
Let the milk come to a boil. Switch off the flame just before the milk comes to a boil. Dilute the lemon juice. The ratio should be 2:1, two parts lemon and one part water. Now gently add this juice, stirring the milk constantly. The milk will start curdling and you will see the cheese separating. Strain the chenna in cheesecloth and rinse it with water. This will remove all traces of lemon. Give a gentle squeeze to the cheesecloth and keep the chenna aside.
We now move on to the second pot which has been on slow fire. Reduce the milk to half.
Add the prepared chenna to the reduced milk. Mix well.
Add sugar and cardamom powder and cook for 3-4 minutes . The mixture should be dry.
Remove on a greased tray, level it and garnish it.
Allow the Kalakand to set. Finally cut into pieces.

Variations of Kalakand
Kalakand is a delicious mithai. Cardamom flavour is the most common. We can try different variations of Kalakand, the list is endless.
- Chocolate Kalakand
- Mango Kalakand
- Kesar Kalakand
- Strawberry Kalakand
- Rose Kalakand
Notes:
- Use full-fat milk to make Kalakand.
- Make sure you use the homemade chenna to get a soft, melt in the mouth Kalakand.
- Using a store-bought paneer might make the Kalakand a little rubbery.
- To make a different variety of Kalakand, simply add the flavouring, while you add the sugar.
- For fruit flavours, puree the fruits and add.
- Kalakand tastes best when it is fresh, however you can store it for 2-3 days in the refrigerator.
Some of my favourite Diwali Sweets
Kalakand is my post under the theme of Diwali Sweets. You can check more Diwali Sweets and Snacks here.
Kalakand | Indian Cheese Cake
Equipment
- Pan / Kadai / Wok
Ingredients
- 1 lt full-fat milk
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tsp cardamom powder
- 1 tbsp almonds chopped finely
- 1 tbsp pistachios chopped finely
Instructions
- Divide the milk in two pots and place both to boil.
- Place the first pot on a low flame and stir the milk at regular intervals .
- Once the milk has boiled in the second pot add the lemon juice and curdle the milk.
- Now strain this mix in a cheesecloth.
- Pour fresh and cold water over the prepared cheese, this shall remove all traces of lemon.
- keep aside.
- Now we shall come back to pot 1 where milk would have reduced considerably.
- We need to reduce it to half.
- Squeeze out all the water from the cheese cloth and add the paneer to the first pot where milk has been boiling.
- Mix well and add sugar and cardamom powder.
- Sugar will release its water, so we will cook till there is no moisture left. This shall take 2-4 minutes .
- If there is a little milk like moisture , do not worry , it shall make the kalakand juicy .
- Transfer the kalakand to a greased tray and let it set.
- Garnish with pistachios and almonds.
- Cut into pieces .
Notes
- Use full-fat milk to make Kalakand.
- Make sure you use the homemade chenna to get a soft, melt in the mouth Kalakand.
- Using a store-bought paneer might make the Kalakand a little rubbery.
- To make a different variety of Kalakand, simply add the flavouring while you add the sugar.
- For fruit flavours, puree the fruits and add.
- Kalakand tastes best while it is fresh, but you can store it for 2-3 days in the refrigerator.

I love this one Vaishali and this is surely one of my favorite sweets…very nicely presented!
one of my favorite desserts of all time. I am now in a fix as to what all to make for the diwali platter. So many options now
This is my favorite one! Making from scratch, this recipe makes the yummiest kalakand! YUM!
Kalakand is looking very festive. I prepare a quick fix microwave version and have never tried from scratch. Love this yummy sweet.
Very festive and my favorite one. I have always made it with ricotta cheese. Need to soon try it with freshly made paneer. I love the variations that you have mentioned. So good.
What a simple and delicious sweet , the best is that it is so quick to make. Will try it for sure.